Here are some interesting visuals on depression that I would love to share as I find them striking and true. http://www.idealistrevolution.org/13-charts-about-depression/

Today at a coffee shop, I overheard (don't judge me, we all do it) two people discussing mental illness and the use of perception drugs. I found it wild that it is becoming a topic for coffee shop conversation. It speaks to the prevalence of mental illness in our culture. And I reflected greatly on these charts that I saw this morning and the movie I watched last night at the Magic Theater, "End of the Tour" and of course my own professional and personal experience with mental health diagnosis and prescription drugs. This epidemic of depression, anxiety, addiction of all sorts as brought to us by loneliness and how our culture contributes it is is an important discussion to have. Something that no longer needs to lurk in the shadows but come to the forefront of conversations among people. It is time to create community that talks about, empathizes with, and heals this! Thich Nhat Hanh, one of my favorite Buddhist writers, said that the next Buddha is community. Loneliness has it's place, it's significant to feel into, to learn from, to help us discover ourselves and we can do this together! This is my dream for Oaks Counsel!